michigan natural features inventory citizen science and...
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Michigan Natural Features InventoryCitizen Science and the Vernal Pool Patrol
DariaHyde&YuManLeeMichiganNaturalFeaturesInventory(MNFI)MichiganStateUniversityExtension(MSUE)MichiganWetlandsAssociationConference,September27,2017
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
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Michigan Natural Features Inventory
ØToday’s Topics§ What are vernal pools?§ Why are they important? § Citizen Science + Vernal Pools = Vernal Pool Patrol!§ Vernal pool conservation and how you can get involved!
Brandon SchroederBrandon Schroeder
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Acknowledgements• Funding provided by Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) through U.S.
EPA Wetland Program Development Grant, Michigan Nature Association, Great Lakes Fishery Trust, Michigan State University Extension-4H, NOAA B-WET, Mid-Michigan Stewardship Initiative, Meridian Township, Wild Ones-Red Cedar Chapter, Friends of Ingham County Parks, and MNFI.
• MDEQ Wetlands Program – Amy Lounds, Chad Fizzell, Anne Garwood
• MNFI Vernal Pools Team – Peter Badra, Suzan Campbell, Joshua Cohen, Dan Earl (AmeriCorp), Helen Enander, Phyllis Higman, Daria Hyde, Brian Klatt, Michael Kost, Jo Latimore, Michael Monfils, Michael Penskar, Rebecca Rogers, Edward Schools; and administrative support – Robin Lenkart, Sue Ridge, Nancy Toben, MSU OSP/CGA.
• Michigan Tech Research Institute (MTRI) and Michigan Technological University – Laura Bourgeau-Chavez and Michael Battaglia.
• Partners – MDEQ, MDNR, MNA, MSUE, MI Sea Grant, Michigan Chapter of The Nature Conservancy, Huron Pines, Montmorency County Conservation Club, Headwaters Land Conservancy, Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy, Little Traverse Conservancy, Mid-Michigan Stewardship Initiative, Meridian Township, Kalamazoo Nature Center, Oakland County Parks, Oakland Township Parks, Pierce Cedar Creek Institute, Ann Arbor Natural Areas Preservation, Herpetological Resource & Management, UM-Flint, and others AND numerous volunteers, teachers, and students!
Michigan Natural Features InventoryWhat is a vernal pool?Naturally occurring, seasonal wetlands in small, shallow depressions in forested landscapes that lack fish.
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Key Characteristics
§ In MI, hold water for at least 2 months in spring
Ø Seasonally flooded – wet in spring, dry in summer and/or fall, some semi-permanent
May2,2013
Yu Man Lee
June23,2013
Yu Man Lee
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Key Characteristics
§ Generally < 2.5 acres
§ Vast majority < 0.5 acre
§ Most < 1 m deep
Ø Size – Small and shallow
Yu Man Lee
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Key Characteristics
§ Can be temporarily connected to other wetlands or permanent water bodies
§ Temporary inlets/outlets
Ø Isolated / no persistent surface water connection to permanent water
YuManLee
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
OpenPool ShrubbyPool
ForestedPool MarshyPool
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Key CharacteristicsØ Plants and animals specialized for life in a vernal pool – “indicator
species” OR “obligate species”
Fairy Shrimp Blue-spotted Salamander
Spotted Salamander Wood Frog
www.vernapool.org
www.vernapool.org
www.vernapool.org
James H. Harding
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Fairy Shrimp (Anostraca spp.)§ Only found in vernal pools (no
fish)
§ Eggs hatch when pool fills with water
§ Eggs require drying and freezing to hatch; “summer” eggs – shortage of males
§ Adults live only several weeks-month (until mid- to late May, or when water temps reach 68-72oF)
www.vernalpool.org
www.vernalpool.org
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Ø 3 species in Michigan (found only 1 in 2013)
§ Eubranchipus bundyi (knob-lipped fairy shrimp) G5§ Eubranchipus neglectus (neglected fairy shrimp) G5
§ Eubranchipus vernalis (springtime fairy shrimp) G4
Fairy Shrimp
MNFI/Yu Man Lee
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Fairy Shrimp
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
ØCritical Habitat for Amphibians and Reptiles
§ “Nature’s Nursery”
§ Early and “explosive” breeders
§ Rapid development: emerge by July/Aug
§ Use same pools each year
Jim Harding
Y. Lee & B. Norris
www.vernalpool.org
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Semlitsch and Bodie 2003 – Core terrestrial habitat for amphibians = 159 - 290 m, core terrestrial habitat for reptiles = 127 to 289 m (Note: Current buffers ~ 30 m)
www.umaine.edu/vernalpools
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Why are vernal pools important?ØCritical habitat for wildlife
§ Invertebrates and amphibians
§ Other wildlife species – 550-700 spp. in NE US
Jim Martin, Wikimedia
Wikimedia Commons
Ann Froschauer/USFWS
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
ØRare species
Northernlong-earedbat– LT,SC
R. D. Bartlett
Copperbelly WaterSnake– LT,E
FalseHopSedge- T
R. Read
Red-shoulderedHawk– T
Spotted Turtle - T
Kile KucherAl Hicks, NYDEC, Wikimedia Commons
Blanding’sTurtle- SC
Why are vernal pools important?
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Why are vernal pools important?
Ø Provide food, energy, and nutrients for vernal pool and surrounding ecosystem§ Incredible biomass
§ Up to 4,000 frog larvae/m2 (Woodward 1982, Petranka 1989)
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Why are vernal pools important?
ØEcosystem services§ Nutrient cycling
§ Water storage
§ Groundwater recharge
§ Flood control
§ May improve water quality Michael Kost
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Why are vernal pools important?Ø Social / Educational Value§ Good way to get involved in
wetland science & conservation
§ Accessible and easy to study
§ People enjoy making a contribution
§ Nice change from invasive species control
§ Vernal pools are fascinating!!
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
VP Mapping, Monitoring & Conservation
§ Growing interest and awareness of vernal pools
§ Vernal pool mapping and monitoring – 15+ states
§ Number of states/programs use volunteers to map and monitor vernal pools
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Citizen ScienceØ “The collection and analysis of data relating to the natural world
by members of the general public, typically as part of a collaborative project with professional scientists” Oxford Dictionary
Ø Citizen Science Efforts:§ North American Butterfly Association§ Christmas Bird Count§ Hawkwatch§ Project Budburst
Ø Technology and crowd sourcing§ Mobile apps - Examples
• I-naturalist• MISIN (invasive species)• Fieldscope Data Collector • Marine debris tracker
Audubon.org
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Citizen Science – NatureServe
Audubon.org
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
§ Data collection is labor intensive , collected from field
§ Quantitative measurements/observations needed
§ Protocols are well designed, easy to learn and execute
§ Broad spatial and/or temporal extents , often large data sets
§ Internet-accessible data submission and results acquisition
§ Guide materials and/or professional assistance are available
Attributes of Projects Suited for Citizen Science
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Citizen Science§ Limitations/Challenges
§ Data quality concerns§ Legal and ethical issues
§ Citizen Science Associationhttp://citizenscience.org/… to bring together the expertise of diverse practitioners working in this field, in order to share the breadth of resources and best practices across different citizen science project types.
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
ØGoals of the Program
§ Verify, map, & monitor status and distribution of VP in MI
§ Collect info on ecology of VP’s
§ Contribute to statewide vernal pool database
§ Facilitate management and conservation of these unique wetlands
Lisa Appel
Y. Lee & B. Norris
Lisa Appel
Vernal Pool Patrol
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Vernal Pool Patrol
§ Volunteers attend training§ Standardized methodology for
data collection/reporting§ Commit to 3 visits per year
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Ø Network of partners and citizen scientists is key!§ Promote and host training and coordinate volunteers§ “Train the trainer” model – e.g. Kalamazoo Nature Center
Mid-Michigan Stewardship Cluster
Vernal Pool Patrol
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Ø 2012 - 2014 Pilot - Adult and family volunteers monitored VP’s in 4 State Recreation Areas in SE MI
§ Visited 75 PVPs
§ Logged over 440 hours
§ High data return rate and good data quality
§ 100% - adequately trained
§ 55% - mentor others
Vernal Pool Patrol
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Ø Amphibians & Reptiles§ Blue spotted salamander
§ Spotted salamander
§ Chorus frog
§ Green frog
§ Leopard frog
§ Spring peeper
§ Wood frog (MANY!)
§ Blanding’s turtle
§ Garter snake
§ Northern water snake
§ Ribbon snake
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
§ Amphipods§ Aquatic worms§ Backswimmer§ Caddisfly case§ Clam shrimp§ Cocapod § Crayfish§ Damselfly§ Daphnia with eggs§ Dragonfly§ Fairy shrimp§ Fingernail Clams§ Fly larvae§ Freshwater snails§ Isopods
§ Leech§ Mayfly§ Midge larvae§ Millipede§ Mosquito larvae§ Ostracod§ Slug§ Springtails § Water beetles§ Water fleas§ Water mite§ Water striders§ Wolf spider
Ø Invertebrates Documented (28 groups)
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
ØAdult programs§ Stewardship Clusters§ Local & State Park Volunteers§ Nature Center members§ UM-Flint - Biology Class§ Conservation Districts/Clubs
Ø Impacts§ Provided 11 (1-day) trainings§ 250 citizen science volunteers
participated in the program§ 200 adult/family volunteers
mapped & collected VP data
Vernal Pool Patrol
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Ø School Programs§ NLP pilot – 2015 – 2017
§ 17 middle and high school teachers from 13 schools and 420 students
§ SE MI- 2017-2018§ 2 H.S. in Monroe & Wayne Co.§ 4 teachers, ~180 students
§ Lessons and Impacts§ Students very engaged in learning
§ Place-based education – YES!!
§ Teachers excited about VP Patrol
§ Need transportation resources
§ Local community partners critical!!
Vernal Pool Patrol
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Vernal Pool Patrol§ Three visits within school year
following standard protocol§ 2 Spring visits, 1 Fall visit
§ Students collect, enter, analyze & summarize data§ Smart phone/tablet apps
§ MNFI conducts QA/QC of data
§ Data entered into statewide vernal pool database
§ Try to minimize impactsBrandon Schroeder
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
• Sharing information & knowledge
– School & local community
– Other schools/classes – e.g., online data sharing platform
– Goal: develop network of schools across MI (and other states potentially)
Vernal Pool Patrol
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
How YOU Can Get Involved!§ Learn about vernal pools and help promote conservation of
these unique and diverse wetlands.
§ Become a local partner and help launch a vernal pool mapping and monitoring program in your community!
§ Help map and monitor vernal pools in the state by becoming a trained volunteer! (Spring 2018)
§ Provide information on vernal pools to MNFI for statewide database.
§ Join the Michigan Vernal Pools Partnership : contact Garret Johnson/MNA, Amy Lounds/MDEQ, or Yu Man Lee/MNFI
Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Questions?Daria Hyde, [email protected]